It can be difficult for small local shops to compete with large supermarkets and with on-line shops. How does this affect local communities? What could be done to improve this situation?

Over the

last

few decades, wide-scale grocery and Internet shopping are increasingly attracting more customers, adding a burden on the community shop owners, as they fight for their survival.

This

is mainly

due to

the low prices and better deals

one

may find in big chains,

however

,

this

causes small businesses to reduce staff and eventually seize to exist.

Nevertheless

, there are solutions readily available to tackle

this

problematic trend,

such

as raising people's awareness about

this

matter.

To begin

with, there is an argument to be made that community shops are of pivotal importance for the locals' comfort. To illustrate

this

point,

one

has to consider the job opportunities and the convenience of having

such

stores in close proximity, especially for those living in remote areas.

For example

, large supermarkets are usually operating at set points between two remote locations in order to meet both places' demands.

This

being the case, a supermarket clerk or customer would have to drive rather than walk or cycle to the location, which in both cases adds up to more expenses. In order to resolve

this

troubling issue,

one

simply viable solution would be to educate the public on how to support

such

businesses.

For instance

, rural German areas host bi-monthly events in which the local authorities offer evidence-based discussions to highlight the significance of keeping convenience stores up and running.

Similarly

, some Greek municipalities offer incentives in the form of discounts in order to boost the local economy. By doing so, local store owners are more likely to beat the competition of their rival counterparts and collectively take part in improving the living standards in their own vicinity.

To conclude

the aforementioned discussion, the overwhelming evidence suggests that

although

one

can buy the same product for a lower price in a supermarket, supporting small store-keepers turns out to benefit the community as a whole.